2 comments:

As unexpected as Putin running for president again (or is it prime minister?), and his sock pupped Medvedev taking his turn prime ministering (or presidenting?). Rebuilding the USSR has always been Putin's thing, though his announcing it explicitly rather than letting it be understood as previously may represent some kind of psychological milestone for him. Like if the Chinese were to announce that they'd like to reunify with Taiwan now, please, and what are you going to do about it?

Putin may be Russia's version of Richelieu', but he is obviously no longer interested in playing eminence gris'. Now he more likely wants to play Louis XIV. (Hopefully not Napoleon'.)

If nothing else, this should bury once and for all the outworn theory that Communism is somehow different from, and "morally superior" to, plain old-fashioned monarchism and "imperialism".

As with China re the Maoists vs. the Manchus, all Russia did with the Bolsheviks replacing the Czarists was to trade a bunch of incompetent, brutal, oligarchic autocrats with lousy fashion sense for another lot of incompetent, brutal, oligarchic autocrats with even worse fashion sense.

After a couple of decades of trying the alternatives, it looks like the Russian government (i.e., the descendants of that second lot of autocrats) is going back to doing business the way they always have. Without consulting the peasantry, of course.